Chch City Council aims for walkway/cycleway at Noble Village

Christchurch City Council staff have
been asked to continue to work with the developer of the Noble
Village subdivision at Yaldhurst on building a joint
walkway/cycleway connecting to other cycle lanes in the
area.

The Council made the decision on the proposed
walkway/cycleway separate from the road following a request
from the Riccarton/Wigram Community Board for a judicial
review into the Council’s granting of the Noble
Village subdivision original consent in 2009, and a
subsequent variation in 2011.

The Noble Village
subdivision is an area of land at 473-475 Yaldhurst Road
which is in the Living G (Yaldhurst) zone. Physical works on
the site of the 304 residential lots began in
2009.

Councillor Sue Wells, chair of the Council’s
Regulatory and Planning Committee, says the Council today
ruled out seeking a judicial review against itself following
very clear legal advice from Simpson Grierson.

“We
considered the advice in the public excluded section of
today’s meeting. We are now taking the very unusual step
of releasing this legally privileged information publicly so
that there is clear understanding as to why we are not
proceeding with a judicial review against ourselves,”
Councillor Wells says.

“The Council is very happy to ask
staff to try and work with the developer to see if we can
get a joint walkway/cycleway - an idea which came from an
independently facilitated public meeting in January.
However, we will not be applying to the High Court for a
judicial review of our own decision.”

Councillor Wells
says the Council accepts that there has been a great deal of
unhappiness among certain parts of the community about this
subdivision.

“Today’s decision will not bring that
unhappiness to a close. However, the reality is that the
best way forward does not involve the Council taking itself
to
court.

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